Chapter 42: Scope of Ecology Ecology: the study of interactions of organisms with other organisms and with the physical environment (word means "study of house")
Population: members of the same species living in the same area
Community: all the different populations in an area
Ecosystem: the community plus the nonliving factors (biotic & abiotic factors)
Biosphere: all the areas of the earth that supports life
Biomes Aquatic Biomes Freshwater: lakes, rivers, streams wetlands*, estuary* Marine: intertidal zone, coral reefs, deep sea vents
Terrestrial Biomes - Tropical Forest - Savanna - Desert - Chaparral - Temperate Grassland - Temperate Deciduous Forest - Taiga- Coniferous Forest - Tundra TUNDRA TAIGA DESERT
Chapter 43 - Ecology of Populations
Demography - the statistical study of a population (density, distribution, rate of growth) Population density: number of individuals per unit area Population distribution: pattern of dispersal of individuals (random, clumped, uniform)
Figure 46.2
Factors that determine how much a population will change 1. births 2. deaths 3. migration Stable populations occur when as many individuals join (birth or immigration) as leave (death or emigration) Population change (r) = (birth - deaths) + (immigrants - emigrants)
Biotic Potential: maximum rate at which a population could grow given optimal conditions (food, water, space) Factors that influence biotic potential: 1. age of reproduction 2. frequency of reproduction 3. number of offspring produced 4. reproductive life span 5. average death rate under ideal conditions
Survivorship curve - probability of newborn individuals surviving to a particular age Late Loss (Type I) Constant loss (Type II) - death is often unrelated to age Early loss (Type III)
Figure 46.4a
DEMOGRAPHICS - statistical study of a population’s density, distribution and growth rate You can create a survivorship curve of a human population by studying cemetery data
Population Growth Models Discrete Breeding: Reproduction occurs once in life (followed by death) Continuous Breeding: occurs throughout lifetime Exponential vs Logistic Growth
J-shaped curve showing exponential growth of a population Lag Phase then Exponential Growth This population has not yet reached its carrying capacity. Requires unlimited resources S-shaped curve shows how a population becomes limited by environmental factors Lag Phase, exp growth phase, Deceleration, Stable Equilibrium Phase Carrying Capacity: the maximum size of a population that an area can support
Growth rate (r) = birth rate (b) - death rate (d) Population growth = rN (r = growth rate, N = original population size) Zero Population Growth - same number enters as leaves the population Some movements encourage low population growth
Regulation of Population Size Density Independent Factors: weather and other natural disasters Density Dependent Factors: food, space, water, parasitism, competition
Figure Density Independent Factor (Flash Flood) – it will have the same impact on a small pop as it does on a large pop. 60% loss for both
Figure Density Dependent Factor – as number increases, not all of them will have access to resources
Life History Patterns K-strategists - small numbers of offspring, usually parental care (Kangaroo) R-strategists - large numbers of offspring, no care, low survivability (Roaches)
Figure 46.14a
Figure 46.14b
HUMAN POPULATION GROWTH Current World Population: 6.6 billion (and growing) Now in exponential part of a J-shaped growth curve. The doubling time is the length of time for a population size to double, now 53 years. Zero population growth is when the birthrate equals the death rate and the population size remains steady.
No other population of large organisms has shown such growth for so long. - Bubonic Plague 1300’s -Industrial Revolution 1800’s
Joseph Lister the death rate of surgical patients was 45.7% death rate of surgical patients fell to 15% which the introduction of antiseptic
Figure 46.16